Let’s see if she’s on board with the specific brand of crazy I’m looking for.
“Olivia, you’re the kind of girl who answers weird ads to get what you want, so I don’t think this question is going to come off the wrong way.”
“Hmm? What question did you want to ask?”
“Will you marry me?”
She stares at me, amazed. “You can’t be serious.”
“As serious as cancer. You just told me what you want and it lines up perfectly with what I want.”
“We’ve been talking for ten minutes and you just dropped a marriage proposal.”
“Yeah, well, we’re both sick of waiting. Why wait much longer?”
“I wanted to get hitched fast, but this wasn’t exactly what I meant, Cameron. You literally just met me. It’s a bit insane.”
“Is it insane to go and get what you want? You know what you want. I know what I want. They happen to be the same thing.”
“You don’t even know what my last name is. And I don’t know who you are beyond some hot and handsome guy who can intimidate creepozoids.”
“What’s your last name?”
“Young.”
“There, now I know it. Will you marry me?”
Her bottom lip quivers. She’s not telling me no outright, so maybe she just needs more convincing.
“It’s not as crazy as it seems if you really think about it.”
“How so?”
“Think about arranged marriages. A man and a woman who barely know one another just show up when their families ask them to tie the knot.”
“That’s history, Cameron. A lot of things about history are weird and not worth doing in the modern day.”
“I’m pretty sure it’s still done sometimes.”
“Still sounds backwards. I think we’re better off marrying for love.”
“And then there are marriages of convenience. I thought that’s what you were looking for.”
“You think I have to get married to get my fictional grandfather’s money?”
“Yeah, there are countless romance novels about that. It must have happened a few times for real.”
She laughs. “I told you, nothing like that is pushing me into this.”
“Then what is?”
“My own personal desire. And also I made a pact with one of my best friends to get married and start a family before another friend’s baby’s second birthday.”
“What an oddly specific pact.”
“It made sense at the time. And as I said, it’s what I want to do. I expected maybe I’d walk into this coffee shop and the guy I was supposed to meet would be a creep, but not that some other guy would show up and make a really compelling offer to give me what I want.”
“Then let’s do it, Olivia. Let’s get married.”
Her gaze drifts off to the side. “I’m still conflicted. How can I know this isn’t some scam? Like you’re after my money. I’m a C-tier local celebrity, you know.”
“I bumped into you randomly, didn’t even know your last name, and you think I’m after your money?”
“Hey, it made sense in my head.”
“So, then let’s break down. What makes you a C-tier local celebrity?”
“I write a daily fashion column for the local newspaper, and it’s nationally syndicated. It pays pretty well. It’d be really weird for someone to marry me for my money, but it’s not impossible.”
“I’m an investment banker. I don’t usually flaunt my income, but I’ve got enough to buy three houses tomorrow if I so desire. I think your newspaper columnist money is safe from me, Olivia.”
She smiles with a chuckle. “Are you secretly a Canadian? Is this your way of getting a green card so you don’t get kicked out of the country?”
“Born and raised in Linesworth. Do I have to show you my birth certificate to prove I’m not some sneaky Canuck out to exploit your citizenship?”
“No need. Not that you being a Canadian would really be a deal-breaker at this point.”
“My mother is Canadian. Does that change anything?”
“Not particularly. I’m just trying to understand your angle.”
“There’s no angle, Olivia. I’m after what I say I’m after. I’m an American making six figures, a homeowner, and in no arbitrary peril in which I have to get married or suffer some terrible fate. And I assume it’s much the same for you.”
“Not as much money, and I have a nice apartment instead of a house, but no, I’m not a gold digger, either.”
“Are you a secret Canadian out to exploit my citizenship?” I smirk.
“What? Why are you accusing me of that now?”
“I just think I deserve a senseless accusation if you got to have one. Fair’s fair, and that’s what I want out of our relationship.”
“Fairness is something I can get behind.”
“We both know what we want, Olivia. We want to get married. We want a family. I think we got the start of a beautiful partnership together. There are no ulterior motives from either of us. If this doesn’t work, we’re both more than capable of walking away from one another, no hard feelings. So that’s why I ask you plainly and honestly my question: will you marry me?”
She swallows, closing her eyes and thinking deeply. Finally, she takes a deep breath and speaks. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but yes. Yes, I’ll marry you, Cameron.”
My heart does a little flutter, and I feel things I don’t expect when hearing those words from a girl I just met mere minutes ago.
She seems breathless, despite sitting down and not doing anything.
I raise my coffee cup to her, out of lack of other options. “Then cheers. Let’s hear it for the start of something absolutely beautiful.”
She raises her cup too, and we bump the paper together, the meeting lacking the satisfying ‘clink’ of glass colliding. There would be plenty of time to enjoy the finer things of life together.
Olivia nervously sips her coffee. “So, uh... now that we’ve agreed to get married, what’s next? I kind of didn’t expect it to happen this fast so I didn’t exactly research what’s supposed to happen.”
“Well, first things first. If we’re going to get married, you’re going to need an engagement ring, sweetheart.”
“And you’re going to buy some girl you just met an expensive fancy ring?”
“Hey, I’m not buying some girl I just met a diamond ring. I’m buying a ring for my future wife. It’s different.”
“Even when it’s exactly the same.”
“Come on. Unless you already had other things planned for the day,” I say as I finish my coffee and stand up, offering my hand.
“My schedule is clear. I didn’t know where this date would go, so I didn’t make plans.”
“Fantastic. I know just the place.”
I lead her out of the coffee shop, her looking up at me, absolutely bewildered.
It was adorable. I could absolutely see myself falling madly in love with her.
Because really?
I think I already was.